Chise was still in training. No official title yet, no real authority—but he had strength. Reckless, impulsive, sure. But capable. Usually. Aside from the many times their mentor, Seris, had to drag him out of the fire he’d willingly jumped into.

Despite her gruff, hardass demeanor, Seris had a knack for reading her trainees like open books. She knew what made Chise—and the others—tick. That’s what made her so damn effective, she knew how to push them—even if it meant quite literally dragging them.

So it wasn’t exactly shocking that she was very against her team being involved in the raid. Some organization with shady dealings, yada yada—Chise hadn’t paid much attention to the briefing. It was a real field op. That was all he needed to hear. If the guild thought it important enough to call in even the trainees, then how could he say no?

The building they were clearing was… odd. Too quiet. A few fights had broken out, but nothing major—just stragglers. The obvious culprits were detained and escorted out. Now came the sweep. Floor by floor, room by room. A final check to make sure no one—and nothing—was left behind.

Despite his tendency to charge ahead, Chise wasn’t stupid. He noticed the signs. The scattered documents, strange stains, and equipment with unclear purposes. Something dark had been happening here—trafficking, maybe experiments. Whatever it was, the guild had been too late. The real perpetrators must have caught wind of the raid and were now long gone.

Briar and Quinn, his teammates under Seris’ wing, poked fun at how hyped he’d been. “All that excitement for this?” But even they were starting to feel it—the heaviness in the air. The building wasn’t just empty. It was wrong. So, naturally, Chise moved ahead of the group—Seris, Briar, Quinn—all of them. Checking rooms he knew were clear. Hoping for some clue, something that made sense of it all. Seris’s voice snapped from behind: “Stay put and wait, Chise!”

He ignored it.

Down a side hallway, he peeked into yet another door. A long corridor stretched beyond. That was… strange. Without thinking, he slipped in. One of the doors opened to what looked like a cell—bare bed, supplies, and other things he didn’t want to think about the implications of.

The others caught up soon enough. No more jokes. They split up, quietly checking cells. Chise moved on, frowning, eyes scanning every corner. He knelt by one bed, lifted the edge just to be thorough—and froze. A pair of eyes stared back at him from beneath the frame. Chise staggered back, heart pounding.


“Oh shit—guys!”